16 January 2009

*** Update - see belowHamas rockets are a controversial subject, and I have had to make changes to this post because several of my readers have misunderstood what I am trying to say here. Perhaps it is because I used irony and sarcasm to make a point - a common technique here in the UK - but unfortunately those whose first language is not English have not really understood the point I was making.

I do not support either Hamas or the Israeli side in this conflict, but I stand for humanity and justice and I am against a cruel war that will not help the ordinary people in the area. Anybody with any knowledge of history knows that the land we now call Israel was a land stolen from the people who lived there in the 1940s. The "Israelis" used terrorism to win their cause and the land. Don't lie about about that, because it is the truth.

In the years 2000-2008 I believe that no more than 20 Israelis were killed by Hamas rockets. Killing people is not a good thing in my mind, and 20 dead Israelis is nothing to celebrate. But then I did some research, and I found that in the 36 months between May 2006 and April 2009 the official Israeli statistics show that 1164 Israelis died in road accidents, which is an average of over 32 a month. So more Israelis die every month in road accidents than died as a result of over 8 years from Hamas rocket attacks. An interesting comparison I think.

These sort of statistics are important, as it puts into perspective why the Israelis thought it necessary to kill over a 1000 citizens of Gaza in retaliation for those 20 dead Israelis. The children and other civilians who died in Gaza were a high price to pay for the collective punishment that the Israelis used against the Palestinian people.

Hundreds of Israeli children did not die as a result of Hamas rockets, but it seems that hundreds of children in Gaza had to die to satisfy the blood-lust of Israeli revenge.

Do the people of Israel believe this a Hamas terrorist?

Why did Israel kill this child?Did you think this was a Hamas fighter Israel?A doctor tries to save another victim of Israeli terrorIs this the face of a Hamas terrorist to Israel?Did this child pose a threat to Israel?Does brave Israel rejoice because they kill children?

Update 30 November 2012

Yesterday the Palestinians came a step closer to establishing an independent country to live in, and hopefully remove the endless cycle of hostility they have suffered from the Israeli state. The United Nations have finally recognised the Palestinian's wish for their country to be internationally recognised. This is an important step towards a solution for this 65 year-old dispute, and a reason for the Palestinians to celebrate.

But rather than feeling good that we are on the way towards a peaceful end to conflict, why does the USA vote against this small step on the road towards a Palestinian state, and the UK abstained? The world can now see clearly, that far from wanting a peaceful settlement to their conflict with the Palestinians, Israel wants to continue in this war-like situation indefinitely. Possibly it is Israel's long-term hope, that if they can grind down Palestinian resistance, then Israel will eventually gain the whole of the land area that was Palestine before 1947? Let us hope that both sides can sit around a table and thrash out the best solution for the future.